Regional Plan on Aging

BIG SANDY FY 2017

Regional Plan on Aging

2018 Big Sandy Ceds is available for public comment

through October 24, 2018.

Send comments to

Denise.Thomas@bigsandy.org

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Welcome to the Big Sandy Area Development District

Our Purpose

To provide those citizens of Kentucky living in Floyd, Johnson, Magoffin, Martin and Pike counties a regional leadership forum, responsible for area wide planning and coordination of service and development projects undertaken in cooperation with the Commonwealth of Kentucky and designated agencies of the federal government.

To serve the member jurisdictions, their subdivisions, and non-profit groups related thereto, as a legally constituted body capable of performing administrative services and implementing programs and projects which improve the quality of life in the region.

To support, assist, and promote private sector developmental and entrepreneurial efforts within the region so as to enhance employment opportunity and to bring about a greater diversification in the base elements of the region's economy.

Who We Are

The Big Sandy Area Development District is a multi-county organization serving its five county area of Eastern Kentucky, charged with planning, promoting, and coordinating programs for regional economic and social development. The organizational structure of the District represents and responds to the elected and appointed officials of member counties, cities, special agencies of these governments, and the citizenry at large. The District Board and staff work closely with elected officials and other community leaders of the area to first determine and then, in partnership with state and federal agencies, to achieve development goals and objectives by following agreed upon development strategies.

The Area Development District concept originated in Kentucky under the Governor Bert T. Combs Administration in 1961 with what were called 'area development councils'. The Kentucky Area Development Office was created that same year as the focal point state agency for providing coordinated assistance to the Councils. Today this role is served by the Governor's Office through the Department for Local Government. The multi-county structure of these councils and the natural economy of using a regional approach was a Kentucky recommendation to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson and has been written into a number of federal acts, including the Appalachian Development Act and the Public Works and Economic Development Act, of 1965. Most recently the concept was written into the Inter-modal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991. The grouping of counties into development districts as they are today was determined in 1967. By executive order of the Governor, all state agencies were directed to work consistently with the fifteen designated areas in developing and implementing local area approaches to programs and projects.

The Big Sandy Area Development Council--the partnership of Floyd, Johnson, Magoffin, Martin, and Pike Counties--received Appalachian Regional Commission designation and funding in January, 1968. In December the same year, the Council received US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration designation and funding. In September 1969 the Board of Directors amended its articles to exchange the word 'district' for 'council' in the organization's name. On February 10, 1972 the Kentucky General Assembly established the area development districts as special purpose units of government with enactment of Kentucky Revised Statute 147A.050 120.

What We Do

BSADD is a means by which local elected officials and citizens unite to provide for the planned growth of their area. BSADD is therefore a regional organization that assists in the formulation and implementation of human resource and infrastructure related plans.

It must be emphasized that the plans and recommendations made by an ADD represent professional advice only. BSADD is not a regulatory agency, nor do we have the power to force compliance with our plans. A good example of this role is the Kentucky Intergovernmental Review Process (KIRP). Established by Presidential order, this process requires most applications for Federal funding to be reviewed through a "single point of contact" in each state. In Kentucky, the Governor's Office For Local Development contains that point of contact which seeks comments from the BSADD on projects affecting our respective areas. Federal agencies are required to take into account the advisory comments of state, regional, and local agencies before funding a given project.

In addition to its regional planning role, BSADD (through our staff) also provides technical and management assistance to local communities on a broad range of topics. To name but a few: help is given to local economic development agencies and to planning commissions; applications are prepared seeking funding for a wide variety of public projects; assistance is provided in meeting administrative requirements of various Federal and State programs; and public management assistance is rendered so that local governments may upgrade their levels of service.